Numerous strategies are being employed to enhanced biomass conversion characteristics in dedicated energy crops such as sorghum. Plant transformation, use of naturally occurring variation, and plant breeding can be used to achieve desirable cell wall composition and structure which is determined largely by content and composition of lignin, cellulose, hemicellulose, and the way they are cross-linked. CAD is associated with lignin biosynthesis. In sorghum, there is a need for identifying germplasm having altered lignin or lignin content and developing markers associated with such traits for use in breeding. The truncated CAD sequences described herein and markers associated with such truncations will expedite the selection of superior new varieties of sorghum with enhanced biofuel conversion properties and/or forage properties. For example, the introduction of sweet sorghum and/or truncated CAD traits into a high biomass staygreen sorghum germplasm may improve yields and conversion properties dramatically.